Sotheby’s sells giant yellow diamond for US$16.3 million at Geneva auction

A 100-carat yellow diamond has sold for US$16.3 million at auction in Geneva.

The 110.09 carat gem failed to sell at first, with the bids too low, before the Sotheby’s auctioneer unexpectedly announced that it was going back under the hammer. He said there had been some confusion over the currency displayed on the reserve.

The sole bidder was a woman in the auction room who bought it for what the auctioneer described as “a very good price”.

The pre-sale estimate was US$15 million to US$25 million.

The Graff vivid diamond is one of the largest yellow diamonds in the world, with its colour given as “daffodil yellow”.

The auction set a record for a jewellery auction, raising US$141 million.

Another highlight of the Geneva spring auction season was expected with the scheduled sale by Christie’s of “The Blue”, a spectacular 13.22 carat diamond, which was estimated to fetch between US$21 million and US$25 million.